Iraqi gunmen shoot dead 11 farmers in northern city of Balad

Gunmen attacked a group of Iraqis working on a farm north of Baghdad today, killing 11 and wounding two.

Police chief Brig. Mohammed al-Baldawi said eight members of the same family were killed, including Sheik Hussein al-Hayali, owner of the farm in Balad, 50 miles north of Baghdad.

The attack happened shortly before noon local time when unidentified armed men sprayed gun fire at a group of farm workers, said al-Baldawi.

Eleven people were killed and two wounded, said Dr. Qassim al-Qaisi of Balad Hospital where the victims were taken.

Balad is a religiously mixed area where Shiite-Sunni Arab sectarian violence has flared previously.